Saturday, November 28, 2015

I am honored to be a
friend of published author Wally Wood. He has written three novels, not to
mention the number of books he has co-authored and ghost written.

Wally’s latest novel, Death in a Family Business, is his first
Tommy Lovell mystery. Tommy is betwixt and between at the start of the book.
His business had failed as did his marriage. Tommy’s self esteem is at its
lowest when he has to move back home. He grudgingly travels with his father to
a small town nestled in the Berkshires to help save a friend’s business.

Wally captures the reader
with his vivid descriptions while pulling us further into the story as Tommy
discovers more about the family “business.”

Check this book out on
Wally’s Amazon author page: http://www.amazon.com/Wally-Wood/e/B0055MJUTU/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1448722637&sr=1-2-ent

Friday, November 27, 2015

The latest issue of Writers Digest features an article,
“Write Your Novel in 2016,” and that is exactly what I plan to do. One of the
quotes within that issue by Neil Gaiman, “But the truth is, it’s not the idea,
it’s never the idea, it’s always what you do with it,” caught my attention.

I have been searching for a
unique plot line that I can sink my teeth into and feel passionate about. But
maybe I don’t need to work so hard on those plot lines, but instead work at giving them a
different twist.

My protagonist, Caitlyn
Jamison, is about to get involved in another mystery. This was not in her game
plan. She has been quite happy working in DC, though continues to be unsettled
about her love life. Her fall trip to the winery for a photo shoot is
interrupted by Ethan when he asks her to help solve another murder. And then
there’s the cold case. What will she do?

Thursday, November 26, 2015

This beautiful bouquet was from our daughter as a way of saying "Congrats" on a job well done. This gesture is so appreciated, and the flowers will be enjoyed by family members over the Thanksgiving holiday.

Wednesday, November 25, 2015

Some of my neighbors have received their copy of my book,* read it, and commented that they couldn't put it down. That is a great compliment. It means the book's pace worked, and for a first time author, that is a great relief. Though one husband complained that his wife "couldn't put it down" and therefore he was afraid his Thanksgiving was in jeopardy. She was able to finish, wrote me a note and added that her husband would be fed!

* In the meantime I still await the twenty copies I ordered :) and keep hoping the UPS truck will stop at our door soon.

Thursday, November 19, 2015

This day
didn’t seem attainable a year ago when I began this novel. The key to success
was plot lines I felt passionate about and a writing partner who encouraged me
every step of the way. She even provided me with the virtual head slap when I
was having second thoughts about publishing at all.

It took
two proofs before I felt comfortable to publish. The first one was marked up
with all sorts of edits. In the second, I found a couple misspellings, missing
end quotes, missing words. Nothing major, but every detail counts when you face
careful readers.

Am I a
nervous wreck? Absolutely, and I wonder if every first time author feels this
way.

It is now
up to my protagonist Caitlyn Jamison and Sheriff Ethan Ewing to strut their
stuff, solve the crimes and bring justice to Upstate New York. They run into a
number of obstacles along the way, but I have every confidence that they will
be successful.

Friday, November 13, 2015

As I begin the second Caitlyn Jamison mystery
I started to think more about voice. What is it exactly? What should it be? Is
it something I have to learn, practice, develop? In a September 2013 Writer’s Digest article, Cris Freese
states:

“To set your voice free, set your words free. Set your characters
free. Most important, set your heart free. It is from the unknowable shadows of
your subconscious that your stories will find their drive and from which they
will draw their meaning. No one can loan that or teach you that. Your voice is
your self in the story.”

The article confirmed what I believed, which
is that my writing voice is mine alone, my personality coming through, and in
that sense unique. It only alters when I get so “in the groove” that the
characters take over, and that’s okay.

So where does writing style come in? Style is
your particular use of sentence structure - long, short, complex, simple,
imagery, conversational, etc. And that is what I need to work on in this next
book. Developing a style that fits my voice, my personality, and is in a way
uniquely me.

Wednesday, November 11, 2015

The road to publishing is
often bumpy. I take some pride in the fact that my manuscript was accepted with
no adjustments needed. It’s the cover that has been giving us angst. We thought
we had provided enough space for the bar code, but alas, it took three tries to
get it right. I have ordered another proof and am keeping fingers crossed there
won’t be any major mishaps.

What I forgot … this is a
first time novel, so there is a certain level (read: high) of stress
associated.I am now thinking of
things I forgot to put in – like the statement: any mistakes are mine! I also
should have included a little more about myself as a person and as an author.

Writing, publishing, and
marketing are new and wonderful experiences for me.I know I am growing in the craft and although there are some
sleepless nights, I think it will all be worth it.

The bottom line is, I hope
readers will enjoy the story and overlook the mistakes they find.

Monday, November 2, 2015

CreateSpace strongly
advises its authors to order a proof copy before they publish.I strongly advise this as well.

Although I had been over
my manuscript many times either on screen or with hard copy, reading it in real
book form is a very different experience.I won’t try to describe it, because I can’t. Just take my word.The photo above is just the beginning
of items I found that I wanted to change, tweak, say better, say differently, add,
delete, checking for extra spaces, etc.

It is hard tedious work.But work that will make the book better
as a result. I am painstakingly going through each page, noting changes with
yellow stickies, and then after twenty or thirty pages, I make the edits in the
document.I have about a hundred
pages yet to go, so excuse me while I get back to editing the proof copy.

Sisters In Crime

About Me

I am a semi-retired Virtual Assistant. I do transcription work when I am not writing mysteries and documenting my family history. I am a member of the Genealogy Club of Newtown, CT, Fredericksburg Regional Genealogical Society, Manatee (FL) Genealogical Society, Anna Maria (FL) Historical Society, Ulysses (NY) Historical Society, and Historic Fredericksburg Foundation, Inc.
I am a member of the Central Virginia Chapter of Sisters in Crime, Old Town Sleuths, and the CRRL Inklings Writing Group.